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Topic Review (Newest First)

04-17-2014 06:43 AM

plantbrain

Quote:

Originally Posted by FlyingHellFish

How come those Dutch tanks don't have the plants swaying in the water current? Do they usually have lower water flow? I'm impressed that the lower leafs don't have a spec of algae on them. The growth is very healthy over all, something that I struggle with. It doesn't look like they have very high lighting either, amazing tanks.

Mostly due to the old myth that it will drive off CO2.

This was common back before they used CO2 gas(you have a pronounced increase over the night and it builds up, they even used tight fitting lids to cap and catch the gas naturally built up over the night). Later, some felt it would drive off more of the CO2 that they added with gas tanks.

Well, if you have a lot of surface breaking, yea, but if you keep it right before breaking, then it works well.

I used Wet/drys before getting into planted tanks and have continued since.
I used spray bars placed out of view on the bottom.

This allowed a lot of current and CO2 rich water to come up through the plant beds and then to the weir box. I was using DIY CO2 back then, so this step was needed to get the most out of a limited CO2 supply and high light.

Today, I do not need that with a gas tank CO2 supply.

So you can do either and most do have more flow than you might think. They just hide it, that's one thing they are obsessive about. I use to add cork backs to my tanks. I wrote articles about it back in the 1990's.

04-17-2014 05:51 AM

ua hua

Not a Dutch scape by any means but it still has to be one of the most beautiful tanks I have seen.

I have a empty tank with dimmensions 60x30x30cm, is it too small? Is it better with a higher tank for a Dutch setup?

I would say that if you're going for that Dutch inspired look then what we've been discussing is that you can "make it your own". No need to stick with the traditional rules but rather just arrange plant groupings with different colors & leaf textures in combination with a bit of hardscaping (or without...either way) should be done to your liking in any size tank. Experiment with what you have and see how it goes...enjoy the journey.

04-13-2014 05:00 PM

ua hua

Quote:

Originally Posted by BruceF

I would like to make the argument for the colorful planted aquarium that is not the Dutch planted aquarium. It strikes me that many people grow plants in an arrangement that they refer to as sort of Dutch which in fact have nothing in common with Dutch rules but simply is a shorthand for colorful. It almost seems like there is a whole school of aquascaping that involves blending hardscape and color contrast that is simply dismissed as not being Dutch enough and not being Japanese enough but is never recognized as being a school in and of itself.

I would agree that just because a tank has lots of colorful stem plants doesn't qualify it as a traditional Dutch scape. I personally like to have hard scape in my tank and I have no desire to have the back and sides of my tank covered so therefore I will never do a Dutch tank in the traditional sense but I like the idea behind a Dutch tank more so than I do the nature style. Maybe instead of calling it Dutch style it should be called American style or western style which is just a hybrid style with the Dutch influence. This side of the world needs to have its own style so why not intermix the styles of the other traditions such as nature and Dutch.

04-13-2014 03:56 PM

BruceF

I would like to make the argument for the colorful planted aquarium that is not the Dutch planted aquarium. It strikes me that many people grow plants in an arrangement that they refer to as sort of Dutch which in fact have nothing in common with Dutch rules but simply is a shorthand for colorful. It almost seems like there is a whole school of aquascaping that involves blending hardscape and color contrast that is simply dismissed as not being Dutch enough and not being Japanese enough but is never recognized as being a school in and of itself.

04-13-2014 03:46 PM

ua hua

Quote:

Originally Posted by FlyingHellFish

How come those Dutch tanks don't have the plants swaying in the water current? Do they usually have lower water flow? I'm impressed that the lower leafs don't have a spec of algae on them. The growth is very healthy over all, something that I struggle with. It doesn't look like they have very high lighting either, amazing tanks.

I was thinking the same thing when watching them. A lot of the Dutch scapes have very little if any surface movement. I think that they probably have higher turnover than you think but the flow rate is less. I have what I would consider quite a bit of surface movement and the flow is pretty strong. I may try to split my return line to help reduce some flow but still move the same volume of water.

04-13-2014 01:35 PM

hedge_fund

Quote:

Originally Posted by ua hua

Well then you don't mind translating them do you

I'm just kidding. It's pretty easy to understand just by watching. I have found way more inspiration and beautiful tanks just by strictly watching videos that are from European hobbyists. Everybody thinks to watch the ADA videos even though they can't understand them but why not ones from Europe.

Yeah, European videos are usually my favorite since they do not mind telling you step by step exactly how they do it. I was watching a video the other day and the guy gave out his exact dosing regiment down the the gram per each fertilizer. Videos from other parts of the world tend to be more secretive and they do not reveal too much...I guess it's a culture thing or I just made a crazy assumption.

04-13-2014 11:54 AM

Jnad

I have a empty tank with dimmensions 60x30x30cm, is it too small? Is it better with a higher tank for a Dutch setup?

04-13-2014 08:54 AM

Jnad

Hello!

I would love to have a Dutch tank in my livingroom, but is there anyone that have done this with smaller tanks? I am thinking 15 gallons and down?

If i am going to try a Dutch tank i have to do a compromise with my familyI dont want to be thrown out i am on the edge already

04-13-2014 08:16 AM

FlyingHellFish

How come those Dutch tanks don't have the plants swaying in the water current? Do they usually have lower water flow? I'm impressed that the lower leafs don't have a spec of algae on them. The growth is very healthy over all, something that I struggle with. It doesn't look like they have very high lighting either, amazing tanks.

04-13-2014 05:10 AM

ua hua

Quote:

Originally Posted by hedge_fund

I understand both videos perfectly; it's Polish.

Well then you don't mind translating them do you

I'm just kidding. It's pretty easy to understand just by watching. I have found way more inspiration and beautiful tanks just by strictly watching videos that are from European hobbyists. Everybody thinks to watch the ADA videos even though they can't understand them but why not ones from Europe.

After searching for any info on the ways of trimming and pruning Dutch type scapes I came across this video. While it might make some of you squirm going to town to your nicely grown in tank with a pair of scissors this is required to keep a nice and manicured scape. I have came to the conclusion that the best info and videos I have been able to find are from the European aquarists.

Sorry for the poor photo yes, there are 2 red plant varieties. There is an itty bitty red tiger lotus at the 1/3 bottom left. And I planted some red stem plants that I think are Ludwigia glandulosa at the 1/3 top right. Can you see it yet?

I'm not sure if it's the lighting, my iPad camera, or if I need to add ferts to the tank that makes it difficult to find the red plants. (I just set this tank up so I wasn't sure if adding ferts was ok). Having said that, should I rethink the location or plant choice?

I am open to any suggestions for plants selections and hopefully I can find it for a reasonable price.

02-05-2014 02:25 PM

zetvi

Quote:

Originally Posted by MamaJu

Thank you for all the links and information on dutch style aquariums. I am a "square foot" gardener and the dutch style really appealed to me. I'm a newbie and feel that I have lots to learn. I really wanted to try the dutch style but was having a difficult time finding information.

I have challenged myself to working through this dutch aquascape and am open to any constructive feedback and guidance.

Week 1:
I am still in the process of planting but here is my attempt at the traditional dutch style with modifications...
1) it's a 75 gallon, not a 90
2) I can't afford the cabinet so it is what it is
3) I am in the process of figuring out how to make a java fern or moss wall. Where do you get the foam board backing for the back wall??
4) If there is supposed to be 1 plant per 10 cm width and my tank is 48 inches or approximately 121.92 cm wide, I think I'm supposed to only have 12 to 14 stem varieties of plants, right? Does that include the plants I use as "streets"?
5) I need help with lighting. I have the zoomed aqua sun ho led but I don't really feel that it's sufficient. I tried to read the many threads on the forum but feel overwhelmed. Any suggestions?
6) so I tried to follow the focal point guideline... Hopefully it's noticeable I drew lines all over the front of the aquarium trying to get the 1/3 measurements just right so if it's not apparent as they grow in then I will need to make some adjustments.
7) some of the plants are from existing tanks I have, others are from my lfs and some from the big chain pet stores. Unfortunately I don't know all the names of the plants so I don't know the growth rates. Only time will tell. I suspect that the plant with the purple flowering buds isn't even aquatic, even though it was sold that way at the chain pet store. I'll need help identifying it. Are there aquatic plants that flower underwater? I'll be ecstatic if there are

So who else is up for the dutch challenge

No red plants?

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